How to study for midterms in a hurry

By Nikki Duran on February 26, 2016

Highlighters

Don’t be afraid to go crazy with the underlining and highlighting process, especially if it helps you out. There’s a reason highlighters are made in a bunch of colors — you can rank the information in order of importance. However, if you use a lot of colors, be sure to make a key so you can decipher the colorful mess later.

Cohesive Working Environment

Not everyone works well in the same place. Some people prefer to work in the library or Student Center, while others need background noise or a comfortable place to sit. There is no wrong way to study; it’s just whatever works best for you.

Notes/Slides/Classwork/Textbooks

Obviously, you’re going to need something to study from, but there’s no reason it needs to be limited to textbooks. Anything you talk about in class, any of the slides professors post on Sakai and any kind of group work or in-class projects are free game. If you have trouble focusing long enough in class, you could ask your professor to record lectures — and, therefore, the discussions in class and the emphasis the professor puts on things — to listen to when you’re getting ready to study.

Flashcards

For classes with a lot of vocabulary or important dates, flashcards can be incredibly useful. And for those who enjoy that kind of thing, this is a perfect opportunity to bust out those Crayola markers and make your flashcards colorful.

Incentives

Apart from getting good grades in your classes, it’s important to set up small incentives for yourself — things like setting gummy bears at the bottom of each paragraph in a textbook or working for one full hour and taking a short break before working again. Take the time to study the way that works best for you, but don’t forget to give yourself a moment or two to decompress and process all of the information you’re studying.